“We are celebrating the 11 7-Eleven stores we have opened since late March and the many more to come,” says 7-Eleven spokesperson.

7-Eleven Inc. recently celebrated the first wave of store openings in Jacksonville, Fla., after announcing earlier this year its return to the north Florida market.

With plans to open 80 stores by 2016, the convenience retailer already has opened 11 stores in the Jacksonville area and a few more in other parts of northeastern Florida. The grand-opening event took place on Dec. 18 at 9 Union Street W., site of a new, downtown 7-Eleven store.

“Instead of a single grand opening, this is an even grander opening,” said Ben Tison, zone leader for 406 7-Eleven stores in the northern half of Florida. “We are celebrating the 11 7-Eleven stores we have opened since late March and the many more to come. This project has been on a fast track, and we are opening a store approximately every three weeks in this area.”

A number of regional and local dignitaries attend as well as the host store’s new franchisees Jay Patel and Vic Patel. The celebration included hot coffee and cold Slurpee drinks, fresh-food sampling and entertainment as well as a formal ribbon-cutting ceremony.

“Each store means more jobs, more sales tax, more business, more franchise opportunities … and, of course, more Slurpee drinks for the people of Jacksonville,” Tison said.

The impact of these new 7-Elevens includes:
Jobs – Each store means at least 10 new jobs.
Franchise opportunities – Every new store is available to franchise for entrepreneurs wanting to operate their own business.
Tax revenues – 7-Eleven already has generated a half-million dollars in sales, use, property and payroll taxes since spring. In addition, about $2 million worth of lottery ticket sales have been paid to Florida for its Educational Enhancement Trust fund to support public education
Local business – 7-Eleven means new business for local companies. Harbinger’s, a Jacksonville-based sign-fabrication company, has been tapped to make and install LED signs for 600 of the company’s recently acquired stores in other parts of the country.

“I invite anyone who hasn’t been in a Jacksonville 7-Eleven store since we have come back to the city to stop by,” Tison said. “This isn’t your grandmother’s or even your mother’s

7-Eleven store. We have fresh-delivered-daily sandwiches and salads, fresh-baked donuts and cookies, hot pizza, mini-tacos and chicken wings, fresh-brewed coffee and espresso drinks. We also offer our 7-Select private brand of products with quality as good as any name-brand yet 10-20% less expensive than similar items on the shelves. All that and all the classic favorites like Big Bite hot dogs, Slurpee and Big Gulp drinks.”